(a) The board of supervisors, boards of trustees, directors or other governing body of any county or other public or quasi-public corporation, body or agency authorized to acquire and hold real property pursuant to the statutory authority under which such county, corporation, body or agency is created may, under such limitations and restrictions as are prescribed by law, lease for the production of oil, gas and other hydrocarbons or for the mining of any other minerals whatsoever, any land owned by the county or such other public or quasi-public corporation, body or agency, or include such land in a community lease embracing adjoining lands, or enter into compensatory royalty agreements in lieu of making such lease, whenever, in the judgment of the governing body, the public use of such property shall not be substantially interfered with thereby. No land used, owned, dedicated, or acquired by purchase, condemnation, gift, or otherwise, as a public park, highway, street, walk, or public playground shall be so leased unless the use of such property for park, highway, street, walk or public playground purposes shall not be substantially interfered with thereby; provided, however, that if in the judgment of the governing body of any such park, highway, street, walk or public playground, drilling for oil or gas would not substantially interfere with the use of such property for park, highway, street, walk or playground purposes, then any such lease on any such property shall provide that drilling for oil or gas beneath the surface of such property shall be done by means of slant drilling from surface locations, outside the outer boundaries of any such property, or from designated locations inside the outer boundaries of such property, which inside locations have been approved by the county parks commission and will not interfere substantially with the use of such property for such park, highway, street, walk or playground purposes. No land owned or under the jurisdiction of the county or such other public or quasi-public corporation, body or agency lying within 300 feet above the line of high tide, or at any point below the line of high tide, of the Pacific Ocean, or any arm, bay, or inlet of the Pacific Ocean shall be leased for the drilling for and production of petroleum products or other minerals, unless the use of such property for public purposes shall not be substantially interfered with thereby; provided, however, that if in the judgment of the governing body of any such land, drilling for oil or gas would not substantially interfere with the use of such property for public purposes, then any such lease on any such property shall provide that drilling for oil or gas beneath the surface of such property shall be done by means of slant drilling from surface locations, outside the outer boundaries of any such property, or from designated locations inside the outer boundaries of such property, which inside locations have been approved by the governing body and will not interfere substantially with the use of such property for public purposes.
(b) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, no tide or submerged lands owned or under the jurisdiction of the county or such other public or quasi-public corporation, body or agency shall be leased for the exploration for, drilling for or production of petroleum products within the boundaries of the areas of the County of Los Angeles described in subdivision (a) of Section 6871.2 unless such lands are within one nautical mile of the ordinary high water mark, the applicable conditions of the Public Resources Code and requirements of the State Lands Commission have been met, and the drilling for oil and gas deposits is to be done by means of slant drilling from an upland site.
(Amended by Stats. 1970, Ch. 1438.)
Last modified: October 25, 2018